Phonograph record rack



May 5, 1942 A. KAPLAN 2,281,845

PHONOGRAPH RECORD RACK Filed Aug. 26, 1941 Patented May 5, 194

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PHONOGRAPH RECORD mox Arch Kaplan, South Fallsburg, N. Y. Application August- 26, 1941, Serial No. 408,305

5 Claims.

The present invention relates to an improvement in racks, and more particularly to that type of rack wherein phonograph records are compactly stored and filed;

The object of the present invention is to provide a rack which is inexpensive to manufacture, wherein records may be compactly stored, and wherein records may be inserted and removed with great ease and celerity, without causing a sacrifice in the stability of the support to the records, whenever the rack, itself, is conveyed from place to place.

In racks in which records are filed and stored so closely to one another that there is not enough space between records to insert the fingertips, it calls for a special provision to enable the operator to" remove a single desired record with case. In prior devices, this special provision usually consisted of a means adapted to enable the records to be rolled out of line from the normal stored positionby a slight pressure of the finger against the records, or by a mechanical ejector device, until stopped by an edge, or some other part of the rack, adapted to prevent the records from rolling farther out of line than necessary to expose the desired record su-iliciently for convenient removal by the fingers.

While, on one hand, the problem of convenient removal of the records has been solved by prior devices which employ special provisions of this nature, on the other hand, when such a provision is installed in the inexpensive racks designed to be easily carried from place to place in a room, there arises a very objectionable characteristic;

namely, that the operator is forced to exercise great care in carrying a rack filled with records, for fear of spilling the records.

In this invention, the special provision em ployed for conveniently removing records is similar to that .of prior devices, with this important diiference that, by a novel manner of construc-' tion, the aforementioned objectionable characteristic is eliminated, as will be brought out in more detail in the following specification.

Other objects and advantages will be brought the two positions of rest, either of which a record may assume when the rack is standing on a flat surface such as a table,

Figure 3 is an end view of the rack illustrating the single position which a record automatically assumes when the rack is lifted from the table,

Figure 4 is an end view of the rack prepared for packing and shipping, and;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary perspective view showing an end partition element modified so that it can be used as a handle.

Referring to the drawing, wherein I have shown, by way of illustration merely, a rack constructed in accordance with my invention, consisting of an assembly of fixed parts which form the body of the rack, and a movable part which functions in combination with the body to achieve the object of the invention.

The fixed parts which form the body of the rack consist of a series of arch-shaped partition elements, designated by the reference characters A, l3, and B,'afiixed to .a front record supporting member ID and to a rear record supporting member C. The member 0 is a unit composed of an upper bar H and a lower bar 12 afiixed to two posts 14 and I5. As best shown in Figure 1., the end partition elements A and B may be attached to both the upper and lower bars I l and I! of the rear memberC, while the partition elements l3 may be shorter and attached to only the upper bar II.

If the partition elements I3 are very thin, the end partition elements A and B may be comparatively thicker in order to furnish 'sufficient sturdiness to the body of the rack. Short pieces of rubber tubing 28, or the like, may be placed on to the ends of the bars in, D, and I2 to prevent scratching the table or the flat surface upon which the rack is set. Records are compactly stored in the rack by inserting them between the partition elements which are spaced at the proper distance apart to accommodate the records.

The movable part of the rack is the intermediate record supporting bar D which is rendered movable by means of the resilient spring-steel wire armpieces l8 and [9, which are affixed to bar D at the points 20 and 21, and to member C at the points 22 and 23 of lower bar 12.

While the body of the rack is similar to prior devices, it is the combination of the movable part with the rigid body which constitutes my invention. The resiliency of the steel-spring wire armpieces l8 and I9 permits the intermediate bar D to as ume either of the three positions Shown in Figures 2, 3, and 4, and I shall now describe the function of bar D.

The normal position of bar D is shown in Figure 1, also in Figure 2. When the rack is res'ting upon a table, as illustrated in Figure 2, the movable bar D, as well as front member I!) and lower rear bar I 2, rest upon the table. Records 24, in their normal filed position, which position is indicated by the reference character N, are supported by the upper rear member I I and the bar D. A desired record may be easily moved out of line from the common row of records, to a forward projecting position indicated in broken lines and by the reference character F, in which position the record is then supported by the bar D and the front member H]. The method of moving a record is by a slight forward flip of the tip of the fore-finger of the operator placed at the peripheral edge of the record at the point indicated by the arrow 25. From the F position; a record may be conveniently grasped by the whole hand for complete removal.

The partition elements of a rack which provides two positions of rest for the records need not be as thick as the partition elements of a rack which does not have this provision, for the reason that narrower spaces between records are permissible, since the finger-tips do not have to be inserted between records during the operation of removing a desired'record. Consequently, the two-position-of-rest feature is a very desirable feature, because the less space there is between records the greater is the capacity of a track of a given size.

For the purpose of lifting the rack, the part of the upper rear bar! I between the two posts l4- and I5, which part is indicated by the reference character 26 in Figure 1, may be utilized as a handle. In lifting the rack, filled with records, from the table, one hand may slide underneath the front member I!) while the other hand may be placed at the rear handle area 28, after which both hands cooperate to lift the rack. The hand slides easily underneath the front member I, because, when rear member C is resting upon, the table, there is practically no resistance to overcome to raise front member Hi.

When the rack is in mid-air as when carried by the operator, the records would be liable to,

vacillate back and forth from the N position to the F position, if the case were that the movable bar D remains in the same position as when the rack stands upon a table, which is precisely the case in prior devices wherein the intermediate bar is fixed in 'a stationary position. For that reason, in prior devices, the operator is forced to exercise great care in carrying a rack filled with records, for fear of spilling the records.

However, in this invention, as illustrated in Figure 3, in which the rack is shown in mid-air, the movable bar D cannot remain in th same position, because it is forced downward by the weight of the records until the records rest securely upon the front member and the upper bar ll of member C, in the position indicated by the reference character S.

It is understood that various other means may be substituted for the means herein described for rendering the intermediate bar movable, without departing from the spirit of this invention.

If, while the rack is standing upon the table, some of the records happen'to be in the F position, it is not necessary for the operator to push those records back in line with the others in the N position before lifting the rack, because this is automatically accomplished during the lifting of the rack. Actually, what takes place during the lifting operation, is not that those records in the F position are pushed to the N position, but that the weight of the records act to push bar D downward out of the way, and all the records fall in line to a new third position S, regardless in whichever of the two previous positions they may have been before the rack was lifted.

The rack functions just as well with a mixture of standard 10-inch size and 12-inch size records.

Obviously, in carrying the rack filled with records, it is best to keep the rack in a tilted position similar to the position illustrated in Figure 3. However, since it is natural for a person to keep his hands in approximately the same horizontal plane when carrying an object with two hands, and since front member It is held in one hand and upper rear bar I I is held in the other hand, it requires no thought on the part of the operator, to keep the rack tilted properly while he is carrying the rack.

It is to be noted that, when the records are in the normal filed position N, they are centrally positioned relative to the arch ,of the partition elements, as can be seen in Figure 2, in which a vertical line 12-17 drawn through the highest point of the arch of the end partition element A, strikes very close to the center of record 24. Obviously, the proper height of member C achieves this central positioning of the records.

As far as the function of bar D is concerned, the rear member C and the front member I 0 need not be of different. dimensions; both the rear member C and the front bar H1 might be of the same height, or the same diameter, as for example, of a diameter just large enough to prevent the records from touching the table when the records are in the N position or the F position. (Obviously, in such a case, rear member C would no longer be a unit of two bars, but only a single bar, and the bar D would naturally be placed equidistant from member C and member ID.) However, in that case, the records, in their normal N position of rest, would not be centrally located relative tothe partition elements. It is advantageous tohave the records, in the N position, centrally located, because a pleasing symmetrical appearance results, especially when the rack filled with records is viewed from the side.

In Figure 2, record 24 in the N position is a standard IO-inch size record. If a standard 12'- inch size record were placed in the rack in the N position, it would be found that, due to its greater size, its center would be situated slightly to the right of line 12-47. However, the discrepancy is so slight as to be negligible to the eyesight.

In order to conserve space when several racks are packed in cartons for shipment, the intermediate record supporting bars of the several racks, with the exception of the bottom rack, are placed in the position in which bar D is shown in Figure 4. With the bar D in this position, the racks may be nested one on top of the other almost as closely together as if bar D and armpieces l8 and I9 did not exist. The bulge of the armpieces do not take away space because the bulge fits in between the partition elements of the rack underneath.

I may utilize the two end partition elements A and B for the purpose of handles by bending the upper part of each end partition element outwardly, thus'making it possible to lift the rack by placing the hands; at the sides of the rack instead of at the front and rear as previously described. Figure 5 illustrates this modification. The handle portion 21' of the end partition element H is not centrally located at thehighest part of the arch, but is more to a forward position at a location approximately equidistant from front member ID: and upper rear bar H. The reason for this odd location for the handles isthat it causes the operator to carry the rack tilted in a position imilar to the position illustrated in Figure 3, without special attention on the part of the operator.

Without departing from the spirit of this invention, it is understood that the body of the rack and the movable intermediate bar may be so adapted as to have records removed by another related method which is well known to those skilled in the art, in which method, the records adjacent to the desired record, on both sides of the desired record, are pushed back by the operators hand so that they are rolled or rocked backward over the intermediate bar, out of line from the desired record, to expose a substantial portion of the desired record for grasping the record with the hand, and the displaced adjacent records roll forward by gravity to the normal position, after the desired record has been removed. In prior devices making use of such a method, the intermediate bar is stationary, consequently the records are subject to vacillate back and forth over the intermediate bar during the carrying of the rack. A movable intermediate bar eliminates this defect. Obviously, the present invention may be adapted to any prior rack, in which a stationary intermediate member has hitherto been employed to provide a means for rolling or rocking records from anormal stored position to a second position.

What is claimed as new is:

1. In a phonograph record rack, the combination of a rigid body and a horizontal bar-like movable intermediate member, the said rigid body comprising a partitioned frame-work adapted to store a plurality of records upon edge in a vertical position, and the said movable intermediate member being disposed substantially within the said rigid body and disposed in perpendicular relationship to the planes of the faces of the stored records, and means provided for connecting the 7 movable intermediate member to the said rigid body and for rendering the movable intermediate member movable, so that, when the rack is standing on a flat surface, one portion of the peripheral edges of the stored records, in their normal position of rest, is supported by a part of the said framework of the said rigid body, while a second portion of the peripheral edges is supported by the said movable intermediate member, which member is, in turn, supported by the flat surface, and the records can be rolled on the movable intermediate member until stopped by an opposite part of the frame-work of the rigid body, but when the rack is lifted from the fiat surface, the movable intermediate member will be caused to move downwardly permitting the records to rest on both of the two said opposite parts of the frame-work of the rigid body.

2. In a phonograph record rack, the combination of a rigid body and a horizontal movable in termediate member, the said rigid body containing a series of parallel arch-shaped partition elements terminating at two parallel record supporting members adapted to rest upon a flat surface,

and the said movable intermediate member being interposed between and in parallel relationship to the said two record supporting members, and means provided for connecting the movable intermediate member to the said rigid body and for rendering the movable intermediate member movable, so that, when the rack is standing on a flat surface, stored records normally rest on one of the said two record supporting members and: on the movable intermediate member, which movable intermediate member is, in turn, supported by the flat surface, and the records can be rolled on the movable intermediate member until stopped by the other of the said two record supporting members, but when the rack is lifted from the flat surface, the movable intermediate member will be caused to move downwardly permitting the records to rest upon the said two record supporting members.

3. In a phonograph record rack, the combination of a rigid body and a horizontal movable intermediate member, the said rigid body containing a series of parallel arch-shaped partition elements terminating at two parallel record supporting members adapted to rest upon a flat surface, one of the said two record supporting members being relatively higher than the other, and the said movable intermediate member being interposed between and in parallel relationship to the said two record supporting members, and means provided for connecting the movable intermediate member to the said rigid body and for rendering the movable intermediate member movable, so that, when the rack is standing on a flat surface, stored records normally rest, centrally positioned relative to the said partition elements, on they higher of the said two record supporting members and on the movable intermediate member, which movable intermediate member is, in turn, supported by the flat surface, and the records can be rolled on the movable intermediate member until stopped by the other of the said two record supporting members, but when the rack is lifted from the flat surface, the movable intermediate member will be caused to move downwardly permitting the records to rest upon the said two record supporting members.

4. In a phonograph record rack, the combination of a rigid body and a horizontal movable intermediate bar, the said rigid body containing.

a series of parallel arch-shaped partition element terminating at two parallel record supporting members adapted to rest upon a fiat surface, the said two record supporting members consisting of three horizontal similar bars and two perpendicular posts, one of the said three similar bars being the front record supporting member, and the other two similar bars being the rear record supporting member in the form of a unit united by the said two perpendicular posts, and the said movable intermediate bar being resilient- 1y secured to the lower of the said two united bars of the rear record supporting member, and inter posed between and in parallel relationship to the said front and rear record supporting members, the purpose being that, when the rack is standing on a flat surface, stored records normally rest, centrally positioned relative to the said partition elements, on the upper of the said two united bars of the rear record supporting member and on the movable intermediate bar, which bar is, in turn, supported by the flat surface, and the records can be rolled on the movable intermediate bar until brought to rest on the front record supporting member, but when the rack is lifted from the flat surface, the movable intermediate bar will be caused to move downwardly permitting the records to rest on the front member and on the upper of the two united bars of the rear record supporting member, and another purpose being that the movable intermediate bar may be moved upwardly out of operating position for the intention of nesting empty racks for transportation.

5. In a phonograph record rack, the combina- 10 tion of a rigid body and a horizontal movable intermediate-bar, as in claim 4, in which the two end arch-shaped partition elements are bent outwardly near the highest part of the arch, forming a handle on each end partition element, each said handle being'situated substantially equidistant from the front record supporting member and from the upper of the two united bars of the rear record supporting member.

' ARCH KAPLAN. 

